Made in Colombia' bodyguards: They fight over us abroad'

"When you're part of a security detail, you won't have time to think, the instructor insists. Their hands tremble. They wipe the sweat from their palms on their military-patterned cargo pants and nervously readjust their earmuffs. Oh, man. instructor Lopez is giving you a hard time here, but out on the street, you'll face a real threat, he presses. Okay! the last one in line shouts with relief. They know the rest of the instructions. Weapons at a 45-degree angle. Load. Aim. And fire at a white silhouette with previous bullet holes covered with tape."

"This is the second day of an intensive bodyguard course in Facatativa, a two-hour drive from Bogota. Spending a week at the S.W.A.T. Bodyguards Academy in Colombia the largest private security school in Latin America is, for many, the greatest achievement of their careers. The Harvard of bodyguards. Madeleine Mendoza, from Santa Marta, dreams of continuing to learn so that one day [Salvadorian] President Nayib Bukele will choose me as his bodyguard. Albert Fernandez has been saving for a year to move up from guarding a warehouse in La Guajira to something better."

"Saul Vasquez and Paul Rojas came from Mexico and Ecuador to train with the best and thus perfect the security of the electrical and mining facilities they protect in their respective countries. Nobody knows more about security than Colombians, they both acknowledge. The instructors mostly retired police officers or military personnel swell with pride when the topic of Colombia's reputation as "

"Load your magazines, boys! Hernan Dario Lopez shouts. Five of the seven students immediately raise theirs to the sky, seven bullets inserted at lightning speed. The other two jam. Every second is precious. When you're part of a security detail, you won't have time to think, the instructor insists. Their hands tremble. They wipe the sweat from their palms on their military-patterned cargo pants and nervously readjust their earmuffs. Oh, man."

Students in an intensive bodyguard course practice rapid firearm loading, aiming, and firing under strict instructor commands. They rehearse using white silhouettes marked with previous bullet holes covered by tape, while casings fall and echoes carry across the mountains. The training environment includes sweat, trembling hands, and constant readiness, emphasizing that security work leaves no time to think. Many trainees travel from across Latin America to attend a private academy near Facatativá, seeking career advancement and specialized protection skills. Some aim to become personal bodyguards for high-profile leaders, while others want improved protection for electrical and mining facilities in their home countries.

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